Skymax 127 SupaTrak - 1st Impressions

[John]

I originally added these comments to a thread on these scopes already running in the Equipment Help section but I thought I ought to pop it in here as well in case anyone's interested in one of these scopes. I think Jamie is going to do a more thorough asessment of one of these on behalf of FLO so we might see a more detailed review in due course. I've not had a chance to take photos yet - I'll add some later.

My Skymax 127 SupaTrak arrived today. I've put it together but it's chucking it down at the moment so 1st light may be a way off

1st impressions:

- Great packing - boxes within boxes within boxes then loads of bubble wrap to boot

- 127 Mak OTA - very nicely put together, looks great, so compact yet a good quality "heft" to it

- Accessories - standard Skywatcher diagonal, finder (6x30 optical) eyepieces + barlow - as expected.

- Mount - feels very solid, reminds me of my old Nextstar 5 GOTO. Good dovetail fitting but no 2nd safety screw. Quiet slewing at all speeds (even 800x !). Mostly made of cast metal.

- Tripod - good height but seems rather feeble. Not as robust as the AZ-3 alluminum tripod.

- Manual - basic but just about enough to get you up and running. Does not seem to refer to this specific model though - it's based on the lighter weight Skywatcher autotracking mounts.

Overall seems well worth the asking price (OTA alone was probably worth that). The whole scope is very light - weighs little more than the same scope on my AZ-3 mount. Whether that's good or bad will depend how stable it proves in use but it's certainly "grab and go".

The true test is to come of course (clouds / rain willing). I'm hoping that the mount will carry my Vixen ED102SS which is the same weight as the 127 Mak. We will see ..... may have to replace that tripod.

John